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HEALTH AND SAFETY IN CONSTRUCTION IN NEPAL
R P Adhikari
Pulchowk Campus (IOE)
Nepal
ABSTRACT. Salety is the most important subject to be considered in constructiolt
industry. Unsafe working condition not only cause minor accidents or injuries, it may
also cause death of workers. In the countty like Nepal, the prevailfutg praetice is not
gultrcient to pfomote and sal'eguard the health and safety condition of lhe workers- On'
the other hand the prevailing des and regulations are not implemented effectivety.
Teiday's constructiorL whether in developed countries and in developing countfie$,
consume concrete. Conskuction has direct relationship with the developm,ent and
rlevelopment has been always for the service of mankind. This paper tries to focus the
condition of such workers w'ho work with concrete/cemeflt for the service of mankind
md need special considcration,
Kelm'ords: Cement, Concrete, Construction, Hazards, Health, Intemational I-abour
Standards (ILS), Labour Law. Personnel Protective Equipment (PPE), Safety.
t
ie
t
l,{r. Rajendra P. Aclhiltal'i is Assistant Education Officer of Engineering Education
Project, Institute of Engineering, Nepal. He is teaching Construction Nlanagernent for
Civil Engineering. He has published atticles on
Undergraduate sfudents
of
construction management and also s€rves tbr various professional orgadsatioff. He
has published a tert book on Consffuction Management. Currentt-v, he is a Research
Scholar at Faculty of Management- Tribhuvan Universit-l', Nepal.
ilppropriare Concrete Technology. Edited by R K Dhir and M J McCarthy. Published in 1996
b1' E & FN Spon, 2-6 Boundary Ror.v, London SEl 8HN, UK. ISBN 0 41 ? 21470 4.
rBw
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116 Adhikari
INTRODUCTION
SafetV is the most important sutject to be considered in constluction industr,v-'
L;nsafe
working condition not only cause minof accidents or in-juries but it ma,v also cause
deattr of workers. No compensation can pro\ide the lif-e tbr a dead percon. [1]
Holvever, dangerous and rish,', construction is not possible rvithout the rvorLers'
invofuement. Dispite of mechanisation of construction in der"elopsd countries' manual
opel'ation are still e$sential.
Shortly after 1800, Portland Cement was discoverecl. Since therr. it has becorne the
most used cemsnting material in the construction industn,. [2] Because of its versati-le
nature, concrete can be fbmed into different shapes as required and th{s it has
become an important and wideh used material in modern conshuction,
Construction has direct relatioru;hip rvith developrnent because. it fi:lIrils people's
desire for socio-economic der,'eloprnent. Development has aln'ays been for the seir,,ioe
of mankind. This paper tries to focus the condition of sui-rh workers rvho work rvith
concrete/cemont for the s€rvice of mankind and ne ed special consideration.
GE.NERAL STATUS OF CONSTRUC'TIOI{ WORKERS IN IqEP..\iConstruction work€rs in Nep{ basically, are peasants and are thus, seasonal' lr{ost of
them are not permansnt in the trade. ,{rtnual requirement of construction workers is
about 200,000. krflux of constnrctio[ workers, having more skill and experience are
increasing day by day frorn the neighbouring counlry, India' Construction workers
both skilled and unskilled do not need formal training or license to practise. They are
most unorganised and they do not have any unions' These all have made them ver-v
wsak in protecting their interest and enhance lhe trade'
.'.1.'::.
:'i
t::::-:.aj;:a "
Daily'*owages of skilled and urxkilled workeis flxed by the Govemment are ILs. 130 and
tius$ is equal lo Rs. 50.00) respective$. The prevailing wage in resiclential
*t.t o"ti* is Rs. 140 to Rs. 200 for skilled and Rs. 70 to Rs' 100 for unskilled'
Nonnasy, if the job is for longer duration and if the workers are working with a
coi*racta bwsr rate are paid and in the smaller projects directly handled by the
sxn6r, highef rpte aro paid. Ilowever, the wage obtained by the construction workers
the
is ailfs,nadag in comparision with the other worksrs in other trades' Apparently
and
facililies,
'basic reasoos-are lack of job secruity, appropriate working condition
they do
*ufuty *"**"s erc. Paid liave is not available to them. Except a snack break.
the
ILO
against
of
this,
a
consequence
weck.
As
uor w"n gst ons day paid leave in a
14)'
(convention
No'
per
week
rest
of
hours
consecutive
24
least
standard of at
job
ryorkers re compelled to work without taking any rest. To make more money, if
ar.
is available, they work up to 14 hours a day.
Temporary labour huts with poor ventilation and light are provided for the workers
who live at construction site. Huts are built with stacking bricks or by curtaining with
CGI sheels. In some huts, cemsnl is also stored.
.**
llealth and Safety 117
Bv rirrue of socio-economic condition of developing countries, involvement of
rvomen rvorkers in construction labour has become a conrmon scenario
and their
participafion in healv manual labour has a considerable effect on ttrsir
health. As
revealed by the sun'ey carried out by the International Iabour organisation (ILo)
amoflg women construction workers in Bombay- miscarriages and menstrual
disorders
are_just two of the many health hazards these workerr hror to battle against. Many
such females suffer from prolapse of the uterus and backaches.
[3J The situation of
women workers in Nepal is not so swere as the sun'ey revealed. There stifl exists the
general concept that heavy load carrying and overtime working are generally
responsibititv of male construction workers. comparative$ lighter activities like
marble chips rubbing, sand screening morlar preparation, moving-concrete pan from
hand to hand for concreting are the major jobs women construction workers perform.
The hear'y tlpe ofjoh they mostly perform is crushing stones manuafiy for producing
aggregates. Thesejobs are considered suitable for women workers.
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ILO STANDARDS AND GOITRN"N{ENT RULES
International Labour convenlions and Recommendations are adopted by the
Intemational Labour conference. after consultation with ILO's member states. In
i966, Nepal become member of the ILo. However, none of ths South Asian
,{ssociation f-or Regional cor:peration (SAARC) countries have ratified all the 173
ILo Conventions. India has ratified 36 Conventions, tsangladesh 31, sri Lanka 30,
Pakistan 29 [4] and Nepal 5. ILO Associate Expert on International Labour Standard
'rim De N'Ie-ver has cornmented in lg93
that Nepal has implemented only 2
Conventions.[51
has ratilied Equal Remunerarion Convention 1951 (No 100) 1n 1976,
.f-epat
Dscrimination (Ernployrnent and occupation) convention 195g (}lo lli) in 19?4,
ll;eekly rest (Inciusrrv) Com;eniion l92l (No 14) in 19g6 \,Iinimum Wige Fiying
Convention 197ti (l.io i3i) in tg74 and lripartite Consultation (Intemafional labour
litandarcis) convenrion 1976 {}ro 14+) in 1992t. Besides the general ILo
standards
{{LSj }ike freedom of associafion, prchibition of forced labour, iquality of opporhrnitv
and rreatment. wage$. weekiy rest and paid leave and etc. thsre are ILS on
t-)ccupatiortal Sai'eti'and l{ealth which are more specificailv related to the
conskuction
lvorkers. Some of the Conventions are:
lb 155:
-'r c; 161 :
.rlo 1J:
\r-r I i5,
Lo 139:
No 170:
..Ic I tr9:
No 127:
lo 148:
**S**rr
{)ccupational Safetv, and Heaith Coruention, 19g1
fJcc upational Heallh s err,ices Convention. I 98 5
t"I,'hitil L€ad (painting)Convention1921
Radiation Protection Conr;ention. I 974
Occupational Cancer Conr.ention, 1 974
Chernical Convenfion, 1990
Guarding of Machinery Convention. 1963
Marimurn Weight Conr.entior4 1967
lVorking E*'ironment (Air. Pollution, Noise and Vibration)
r. otl\'entton. ly / /
lr
ia
,j
,i.rti::i&A-e&&
-{dhikari
The re,risedversion of Safetv Pro.i,ision {Ruiiding; com,ention i937 (No 6l} is rhe
Safe$'and Health in Conskuction conr,ention iggg (No 167). This convention
applies to all corutruction activities (burlding. ci,"il engineedng, erection anci
dismantling on a site). from the preparation of the site to the completion of the projeci.
[6] The main aim of this Convention is to ensur€ safefi and irealth in construcrron, -{s
per this convenlion all appropdate precautions shall be taken fo ensure thai ril
workplaces are safe and without risk of injur-y to health. Honever. such irnpor-rani
Conventions are still to be ratified by the Govemment.
Afier the collapse of the Panchavat (par$less) svstern of gorremment in \,,{ar 1990.
the new constitution was prornulgateci in Nor,ember l99o rhe ,,i-.abour Acr 20-1g,,
came into force on 15 r{ay 1992 which has some special pror,isions related wrth
corrstruction industry. Before this, there was no special law, regarding labour in
construction industry. The law regarding "Factor1. and Facton' \\Torkers 20i9" rvhich
was formulated under the "Factorv and Factor-1. workers ,{ct 2015,, rvas lhe reference
at that time. "Labour Act 2(i48" has follorving special provisions applicaLrlE to the
construction industry : [7]
a. sufficient tools and equipment are 1o L're prorrirlerl bv tl-re managrirren{ at
conshuction site-
b. it i$ managsment's responsibility to manage shelter. fooding, drinldng *ater
etc., if more than 50 workers are inr,olved in a construction.
0' it is management's duty to have worker's insurance against accidenl.
d. it is rnanagemenf's duty to keep construction site safe.
o. it is management's duty to provicle necessaly personal protective equiprnent
(PPE) ibr the workers involved in construction.
In general, "I-abour Act 2048" has various pro'uisions and are also supposed Io be
applicable for the construction workers also. Some of them are:
working hours should not be more than eight hours a day or forlv eight hours
a week and there should also be a holiday in a week.
b. Government shall fix the minimum wage for the workeru and no workers shall
be paid less wage than the minimum.
c. Various clauses regarding health and safety.
d. clauses regarding welfare activifies such as welfare fund, cornpensation rest
room etc.
The provisions of the Acl have an effective impact on the factory workers, but ibr fhe
construction workers, they have very liule practical implication. Thus, they are not
found practically strong to favor the construction workeri in Nepal.
CONCRETE INT}IJSTRY IN NEPAL
Stone, brick, timber, mud and lirne mortar are the traditional building rnaterials wideh
used in Nepal. concrete construction in Nepal started about half a century
ago. palace
+
Health and Safety lI9
of then Prime Minister Mohan sumsher (April l948-November 1951) is considered
as a first concrete structue in Nepal. The technolory used in this sftuctue was
inlluenced by the British krdian technologr prevalent in the thsn India. At the
beginning concrete constructions were a status symbol. Government buitdings were
built in accordance with it. The ea*y application of the concrete wors limited to the
slab-like structur€s.
{il
'11
iIi
fi
$
Gradually, people became awar€ of the inherent properties of the concrete-strengfh,
durability and easy to cast into desired shape. Tradesmen got opportunity to be trained
in concrete structures. This attracted ordinary people towards concrete shuclures.
Deforeslation limited the availabiiity of timber. cost of the materials wsre also
increased. on lhe other hand, Nepat being a mountainow countr5r, aggregates are
available in plen4r. Furthermore, better performancs of the concrete stimulates people
towards the use of ooncrete in construction.
Concrete industry in Nepal is yet to be mechanised. Miring transportation, pouring
etc. are performed manually. However, coricrete mixer, hoist etc. cafl be seen in sorne
constructions.
}IEALTH AND SAT'ETY II{ CONSTRUCTION
fuIost ol'the largeimajor construstions in Nepal follow rhe FIDIC conditions of
clontract or wB gurdeline for procurement. There is not uniformiry in conditions of
Clontract applicakrle to constructions. Sometimes, only simple agreement works
hetrveen the owner and the contractor. It is also found through obse.nation that even
the Department of Buflding has not prepared detailed conditions of contract and
specifications, In such a situation, effectir,e implementation of health and safery
standards are hardly possible" No conskuction site is inspected by the officials from
the labour office and in general, no safefy officer is appointed in the construction
. ir.-
T'h". filnn rvork and false rvork are not propeil1, designed. In l,{arch 1994, form work
aird laise rvork ofa boiler house ofa five star hotel in the capital city collapsed during
concreting and ciaimed the lilb of a person and eleven others injured. t8l similafly in
september 1994, rvhile remor,'ing fbrmwork frnm the newly casted roof of a school
bullding wliole of ttre slab collapsed, [9] There are manv such umeported cases.
.Llowerier. before cr:noreting. the formworks are inspected by the engineer. There is
also no practice of hammering the nails exposed on the planks immediately. piercing
bv nrsted nails are cornmon and such happemngs are rrot reporteci in any fbrm.
ilcncrete mixer is used in mixing ccrncrete. Pumping s-vstem is yet to be inaroduced,
I'hus, cooorete is kept ia an iron pan and moved hand to hancl to the place of casting.
Personal protectir",e equipment such as boots, glorzes, protective clothes are not
4!S?*s*Ii".
iti
'i:d
li$
.:tr
ih},
s
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i{
},.1:
+-'-j--^l-,
i-"-}:'
r,;j:'ri i}l flllii.i-i.t;i:.i:
'li!
;.+l r-i:i:
. :
.il'{**d}&.&
120 Adhikari
nol aii.
compulsory to all the wol'kofs. Some woi'kers afft sQen with nrbber boots but
Some ro11 pollthene sheet on theil foot during concreling. Palches ol cement s1unl
are seen on the bodY ofthe workers.
The workers are fiot only untrained the-v- are not orientated with the comrnon haz;rrcls
'fhe-v are unawal'e of tiris lVorkurg ruth
and probable sat'ely measures to be adopted,
concrete does not exclude them handling cemenl. Gorrernment ott'ned cernenl
distributing compan-Y operates {iom a godown with ven p001 lenlilation and liehtlng'
covcred *'itir
T-he poneis invi-,"d in ioading and unloa<ling of cement are fbund fuIl1'
glor.es
boots'
like
clothes'
protectilre
equipment
pror,ided
not
cement dust. The-v are
and masks. The floor is found coriered with a thick laver ot cemenl dust.
COF{CT,LISiCI}i A}D RECOl[\{E\D.\TIO\!;
Construr;li6n is a complex plocess arrcl is consiclc'reri to bc dangerous enil fiekl 1'-'i)'
However, workers' involvement in the constueti<-'n job is essential ln n'lod*rn
construction, concrete is an irnportant and usefui matenal. It has served mankind in a
ol
sigrrificant waY. l.{ost of the largelmajor constructions in Nepal adopts doctrments
part
noi
is
implementation
the
11t8.
But
iniernational standard such a.s FIDIC or
and
encouraging. There is no licensing s-vstem fbr workem. Thus. there arc untrained
alrle
not
are
thev
unorganised.
mcst
are
the1,Since
construction,
in
unawar; workors
to form a urlion to protect their interest.
ln most of the ICB contracts, simple PPE are seen pror'ided to the workers' trnsurance
is also done. Hower,er, there are significant number of iarge residential, commercial
a
and other construction which do not follow ttre safetl measures' Dust is also
of
earth,
cofirmon nuisance on any construction site' It may arise due to the handiing
sites
aggregate, cemert, traffic and wind. The dust inhaled bY workers at constructiofl
CNSLL)
Pneumoconiosis,
Crraphite
Talcosis.
*i'V L*" lungs diseases like Silicosis,
etc. [10]
of
Occupational diseases are the results of physical conditions and the presence
matetials,
ILarv
indusfial poisonous aod non poisonous dust in the atmosphere'
products, by products and waste products may, in the process of being extracted or
manufacturid enler the body in such quantitie$ as t0 endanger the health of the
workers. [11] Workers in potteries ceramics, metal grinding, refractories. slate, pencil
mines or stone mines, road building, construction works are affected by respiratory
diseases, leading to spitting of blood and a painful death due to Silicosis. [12]
Workmen handling bulk cement, lime or fine pozzolona shall wear protective clothing.
rtspirators and goggle shall be instructed in lhe need of cleanliness t0 prevent
dermatitis an<l shall be provided with hand cream, protectir,e jetrlv or similar
preparation for protection of exposed skin. [ 1 3]
For the development of the country and communitY and to provide requbed sen'ices
for the rnankind" construction is an essential and basic activity. lttlodern construction
whether in developed antl in developing counlry consume concrete. Thus, the workers
Health and Safety l2l
rr'"ol."'ed in congtruction and related works particular$
in the countrie$ like Nepal
x'here no safetv practices have become a systim need special
consideration. some of
the recommendations are as follows :
l.
Training shall bo made compulsorv.
"J
Licensing svstem shall be introduced. This helps maintaining
construcl-ion workers.
the register of
Lrspection of conskuction sites by the ,Health & Safot/ Inspection'
(I{SI) from
the labour office is essential. For such inspection check list should
be prepared In
the involvement of ILo representafive, workers representative, government's
representative, construction engineer/manager, contractor etc.
checklists for
diflbrent activities shall be finalised so that the prepared checklists can be
pracfically applicable.
Tlpes of formwork sho,ld be specified and forms shourd be as per drawings
provided and should be errected accordingly.
)
Forrn work should be designed to carrv vertical and horizontal
loads including
rhe dead weight of shuttering and scaffolcling concret' mix,
reinforcemenq
persons performing concreting, equipment for transporting
horizontally, vibration and others.
concreting
6.
Personal protectivc equiprnent shoukl be made compulsory.
1
Er'ery' five l'ear construction workers shall har,,e access to the
medical
*xaminalion tirr tirnefu' detection an#or for fimely treatment of
the hazards.
!
i, each lerse +onstruction (employ,rg more than r00 workors per day) should
puhlish a "+cnsiru*ion bulletin" at least once
a month in a local tanguage to
mak* the ccnstruction workers aware of the nature and the rislg,,4razaralrus purt
r;1. th* r:r:rufrrrction rvhere thev are neederl
to be cautious and ihe ppE should
A(:KNOIVI,EDGMENT
I)uring tl're p*paration ol'ihis paper I am ohliged to the fbllowing persons
ancl wish to
I;ie"';ith tllt-r'-;ud ml sincere ackrorvledgment and thanks:
l, Ptrf'essor Pr**i r-ath \.Iasker,^ Departmert of
i'ampr-rs. InItirute of F,nginesring. I_alitpur,
:
WS8*!r
Engineering, Pulchowk
\1epal.
l)eeFak Bharrarai, Principal" Nepal Engineering College, Kupondole. Lalitpur,
I'ir
.!:l',1,11.
5.rr.l::.i:i;.:j;::!.!ri1r
rr:!i: t ::,:i L ;,,:r,i1!riiitllji]::,&a€&&
122 Adhikari
REFEREN-CES
ADHIKARI, R. P., Construction N{anagement- 2nd Edition. .{akshaioi,
Prakashan. Kathmandu, 1993. pp92
I-,{NDERS, J. L,{.. Construction. 'fhe Goodhea*-Willcor {)ornpanv in;..
Illinois. 1983. pp. 8-9
BASU, P., Health Hazards in Construction lndustrl,. The 'I'u-nes of lndia. \eq
Delhi, Berurett Coleman & Co. Ltd. I\Jarch 8. 1 993.
4.
KANTIPTIR PLIBLICATIONS PVT. LTD., Karhmandu. The Lat]:manrii:
Post, March 16, 1993.
KANTIPLIR PLIBLICATIOIJS P1'T. L.TD.. Lafhmandu. 'iiie I..arhmandu
Post, March 16, 1993.
6.
INTER.]dATION,{L LABOLIR OFFICE. GENT,\'^{^ Summuies of
international labour standards. Second Edition. 1990. pp iB-19
LAW BOOKS I\4ANAGEN4ENT COh4MITTEE. Karhmandu. Labour Act
2048.
GORKAHPATRA SANSTHAN. Kathmandu. T'he Gorkhapatra. March :
1994.
9.
GORKAIIPATRA SANSTHAN, Kafhmandu. The Gorkhapatra. Sepr. ?" 1 99"1
10.
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CONSTRLTCTION N{ANAGEI\,fl1NI ANI)
RESEARCH (MCMAR), BOMBAY, Cornmon Safety Pracrices in
Construction Sites. 1990. pp 36
Il.
MAM0zuA, C. 8", Personlel Management, Himalava publishing House,
Bombay, 1990. pp.905
12.
I\.ftMORIA, C. B., Personnel IVlanagement, Himalaya publishing l{ouse,
Bombay, 1990. pp. 906
13.
NATIONAL INSTITLTE OF CONSTRLTCTION M,4.NAGEN{ENT ANI)
RESEARCH (MCMAR), BOL,{BAY. Common Safefy practices in
Construction Sites, pp 30